Current events

[aadler]

 
While I was continuing to polish and post “Glass Ceiling”, I didn’t really say much about what else was going on in my life. Some of the highlights:

1. My 24 Season 4 DVDs arrived by mail, and I’m now partway through the fourth of six disks.
    
2. Under the merciless impetus of yahtzee63’s continuing writings in that fandom, I bought Seasons 3 and 4 of Alias, and ordered Seasons 1 and 2 from Amazon. That should hold me for awhile (especially since, being a purist — not obsessive-compulsive — I can’t begin till Season 1 arrives).
    
3. I went out on a few more missions, half by helicopter and half by ground convoy. Nobody shot at me, and I didn’t shoot at them. It’s a working arrangement.
    
4. My OIC told me he intended to send me out to one of the firebases sometime in mid- to late January, to give me a paper record of the field experience that would facilitate my next promotion. To make sure I’m ready for the physical demands, I’ve been walking the compound daily, wearing full battle-rattle and carrying a 60-pound rucksack. Not really pushing myself, just general conditioning.
    
5. Our detachment commander departed for home leave yesterday, so I’m covering all detachment coordination by myself for the moment.
    
6. I keep getting story ideas. Nice to know the fount hasn’t dried up, but sometimes I wish I could get the chance to finish the current crop before I’m hit with another batch.

One more thing. A couple of months back, I grouped the Buffyfics I’ve done in alphabetical order, and got the sudden impulse to have a title for each letter of the alphabet. Progress so far:

• A — “All Ye Who Enter”
• B — not yet written
• C — “Come to My Window”
• D — “Dusk Over Pompeii”
• E — “Each Proud Division”
• F — not yet written
• G — “Glass Ceiling”
• H — “Hell Hath No Fury”
• I — “In Ev’ry Angle Greet”
• J — no ideas so far
• K — no ideas so far
• L — no ideas so far
• M — “Morning’s Echo”
• N — “None So Blind”
• O — no ideas so far
• P — “Point of Focus”
• Q — not yet written (nor can I start until sroni gets me a first draft)
• R — “Rorschach”
• S — “Shadow and Substance”
• T — “Tip of My Tongue”
• U — no ideas so far
• V — “Voices in the Dark”
• W — “Whisper of a Moment”
• X — no ideas so far
• Y — not yet written
• Z — no ideas so far

That’s eleven stories I’ll have to write in order to meet my goal. Eight in a year is my record; I’ll probably equal that during this deployment, but eleven in the next four months is a bit much to hope for. No, I don’t count drabbles.

A week until Christmas. That actually means less to me than the fact that we’ve been here almost six months already.